You were always the one
by Final Countdown
Summary: A little while ago, I asked people on Tumblr to send me "I wish you would write a fanfic where..." asks. This Stelena oneshot is the result of one of those asks. "I wish you could a write a fic where, after Elena wakes up, Stelena end up together." Enjoy!


I. Stefan

I stared at the coffin that held Elena's sleeping body, as I had been for three days now. Three days ago, Bonnie Bennett died with a smile on her beautiful face and although I would miss my friend, the friend who saved all of our lives so many times I lost count, it didn't feel wrong. She passed away shortly after she celebrated her 86th birthday, surrounded by her children and grandchildren and three of her closest friends: me, Damon and Caroline. Damon had made sure she could live all these years without so much as a cut or a bruise, he was always there to keep her safe, never imposing, simply protecting. I didn't know what her death would mean to him. Of course it meant he'd finally get to hold Elena in his arms again, but over the years he had grown closer to Bonnie than I had ever thought was possible. I would have to talk to him about that, just not yet, he had been too overwhelmed with grief and I knew he needed a few days to come to terms with losing her. They never even shared a kiss, at least, not that I knew of, but I knew both of them held a special place in each other's hearts. In an almost cosmic way she meant more to him than anyone ever had. She changed him in a way no one ever could, not even me, not even Elena.  
But I couldn't worry too much about Damon now, if there was anything his friendship with Bonnie had taught me, it was that he was finally starting to understand how to deal with pain, with loss, with emotions overall. He would be fine, because Bonnie taught him how to be. One of the many things I had thanked her for over the years. Now it was time to worry about Elena, who was going to wake up from her coma soon. That was why I was here, to make sure she'd be alright. I didn't know what state she would be in after having been comatose for over sixty years. So much had changed. She lost her brother, she lost Matt, she lost Bonnie, and even though she had known she would probably never see them again, it would still hurt her. We all figured it would be best if I waited here for her alone, so I could talk her through everything she missed out on without giving her too much to deal with all at once. Even Damon agreed with me, he acknowledged that I knew her best and that I was going to figure out how to approach her. Plus, Bonnie or no Bonnie, he had never been good with delivering bad news and I secretly thought he simply didn't want to tell her about Jeremy.  
I jumped up when I heard a sound come from the coffin and started to walk towards it, speeding up when I heard a muffled voice come from inside. "Let me out! Hey, let me out!"  
I tore off the coffin's cover and gave her some space, smiling like an idiot when I saw her familiar face again. "Good morning, Sleeping Beauty."  
Her eyes darted towards me and her face lit up in an incredible smile, the sort of smile I had been looking for, for sixty years, without ever finding it. "Stefan?"  
"The one and only," I nodded.  
"I'm awake!" Then it hit her, she realized why she was, and her warm brown eyes filled with tears. "Bonnie…"  
"Bonnie passed away," I said softly.  
"How long?" she asked, her voice trembling with a bittersweet mixture of fear and hope. Fear that it wasn't long enough, hope that Bonnie would've gotten everything she wanted out of life and more.  
"Sixty-six years. She died three days ago as an eight-six year old woman. You gave her everything, Elena. She had an amazing life, we all made sure of it."  
"I didn't give her everything," Elena mumbled, wiping away her tears. "I only gave her what she deserved. But I'm glad she had a great life."  
I smiled, because I liked hearing that. This sounded like the girl I fell in love with all those years ago, the one who would walk through a fire for the ones she loved. The girl I still loved, the girl I would always love. "She did. She had had three daughters, and a son, all witches, by the way, and seven grandchildren. She had a husband who worshipped her, friends who loved her and a best friend she never stopped remembering."  
Elena smiled at me through her tears. "It's good to hear that. What about the others?"  
"Caroline and Damon are alright, they aren't here because they thought it'd be better to give you some space to come to terms with everything, but they can't wait to see you. Tyler is still out there, too, I think his werewolf curse keeps him from aging too fast. He was there for Bonnie's funeral and he's staying in the mansion, waiting to see you, too. Matt and Jeremy…" I swallowed. "They passed away. But they left a bunch of letters for you, because they didn't want you to miss a single thing."  
She didn't seem shocked to hear this, of course she had expected it, but soft sobs gave away she wasn't feeling as composed as she looked, which wasn't a surprise. "Help me up?" she murmured, stretching out her hands. I helped her out of the coffin and she sighed, a sigh of relief, leaning her head against my chest. "Please take me home, Stefan."

II. Elena

I wiggled my fingers in front of me, admiring how wonderfully human they were. I hadn't had much time to enjoy the fact that I was human again, because only a few days after I took the cure, Kai already trapped me in a coma, tying my life to Bonnie's. But now I was back and though I was feeling weirdly disconnected from everything, one thing hadn't changed: I was human again. And I loved it. Even after six months the simple act of preparing a meal could make me laugh because of how happy it made me to actually enjoy food again.  
In a weird way, I was also grateful to Kai, for putting me in that coma. He had given me over sixty years to think, to dream, to go over my life choices and my desires and what I wanted out of life. Without him, I would have been dead by now, probably without ever having figured out what I realized while I was asleep. It had never felt like a punishment. I hadn't even been aware of time, all I had been aware of, were my thoughts. Of course it sucked that I didn't get to live my life with my brother and my friends, but thanks to the letters they wrote me, I could still kind of feel like I had been a part of all of it, and now I could add my own chapters to their story. And, hopefully, someone else would want to write those chapters with me.  
I looked at the little wooden box Sheila, Bonnie's oldest daughter, had given me a few days ago. It held my future. At least, I hoped it did, because it didn't depend on me, it depended on him, and on whether or not he would still want this with me. He once said that there was nothing on this earth he wanted more, but that was a long time ago…  
My thoughts were interrupted by the door bell and I got up. I opened the front door and I couldn't help but smile when I looked into his beautiful eyes. "Hi, stranger."  
"Elena. Can I come in?"  
Of course. I took a step back so he could come inside. He kissed me lightly on the forehead and then followed me to the living room.  
"Do you want a drink?" I asked, trying to keep the nervous trembling of my voice down to a minimum.  
I didn't have him fooled. Of course I didn't. He furrowed his brow, looking at me with narrowed eyes, but relaxed after a few seconds. He probably figured he'd wait until I'd tell him. I knew him pretty well, too. "No, thank you."  
I nodded and went to sit down next to him. "Good. Then that brings us right to the reason I asked you to come here."  
"Since when do you need a reason?" he asked, sounding surprised.  
He was right. I didn't. We had been spending a lot of time together ever since I woke up from my coma, bonding, talking, laughing. Remembering. "Since now."  
Curiosity flamed up in his green eyes and he leaned slightly towards me, gently placing his hand on my knee. "What is it, Elena?"  
I was silent for a few seconds and then I smiled at him. "You know, you never asked me what it was like, being asleep for so long."  
A gorgeous smile lit up his face. "I do know that. I figured you would tell me if you wanted to."  
"And I want that," I nodded. "I actually feel like that coma is something to be grateful for. I wasn't just 'gone', I was still there, just in a different way." I could see Stefan's eyes go dark with worries and grief, so I hurried to continue my story. "It never felt like a burden, I was never bored. All I did was dream and fantasize and think, I wasn't even aware of a thing called time. It gave me a lot of room to think about what I wanted my life to look like, time I wouldn't have gotten if it hadn't been for Kai." I inhaled deeply. "That's why I never got back together with Damon. When we said goodbye, I promised him that I would, but sleeping and dreaming and thinking for so long helped me realize that life is too damn short to spend it with someone who isn't right for you."  
"I think that's a wise decision," he said softly. "There is someone out there who is perfect for you, I'm sure of it."  
His kind words made me smile, although they also worried me a bit, because no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't find anything in his eyes or his voice that led me to believe he still thought he could be that person. It didn't matter, though, I just wanted him to know. If he decided that he couldn't trust me again, then I would be okay with that. I just couldn't live my life without him having the option and I knew he would feel the same way about it. I closed my eyes for a second and then I got up. "Sheila visited me a few days ago and she brought me a gift. It turns out Bonnie told her a lot about me, about all of us, and she got to thinking and she ended up wanting to give it to me." I walked towards the box and picked it up, smiling. "Although it's not really for me. It's a gift for you." I walked back to the couch and sat down again, giving him the box. "Open it."  
He opened the box and his eyes went wide with shock and surprise when he realized what was inside it. "Where did she even get this?"  
I smiled at him. "Apparently there's nothing an entire family of Bennett witches can't do. Her children helped her to go back to 1903 and she managed to bring the cure home."  
"The cure…" he sighed, unable to look away. "And you're… giving it to me?"  
I nodded. "Yes. Don't get me wrong, I'm not expecting anything. I don't expect you to trust me again or love me again or want me again. I just know that this is what you've always wanted and I… I wanted you to have it. I wanted the choice to always be yours."  
The words made him smile, because it was the very same thing he said to me a long time ago, when he wouldn't accept the first cure I tried to give him. "You are a piece of work, miss Gilbert," he said softly.  
"I try," I said teasingly.  
He closed his fingers around the cure and then looked at me. "I don't even know what to say."  
"Just say you'll take it," I whispered. "Say you'll be happy. Say…"  
"I will take it," he interrupted me, placing his hand on my cheek. "Wanting a human life with you… That never changed. Not when you chose Damon, not when I fell for Caroline, not when you were put in a coma. You were always the one, Elena Gilbert."  
As he had always been mine. I smiled and leaned towards him and when his lips touched mine, I knew I was home. We were both finally home.


End file.
